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5 Skincare Staples I Used Up

Posted on January 31, 2017 by Hanan.

We are well into the new year. I can’t believe that January flew by already. Honestly, the older I get, the harder it is for me to grasp the concept of time. Since this month is all about starting afresh, it’s only right that I throw away all the trash that I’ve been hoarding, and finish up all the products that are close to the end of its life.

Turns out, I managed to finish up quite a lot, which I am pretty cuffed about. My resolution this year is to use up as much of my stuff as possible and get the most out of everything. And to buy less beauty products in general, so that I can use everything fully. I have this bad habit of getting bored of the item halfway and switching to another. Hence, I have to so many half-empty bottles lying around.

So a disclaimer: Any product I feature in my empties mean that they are relatively good products. I usually will give away products that don’t suit me, sell them off and try to find a good home for them.

Here are 5 staples that everyone needs:

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1. Banila Co. Clean It Zero Purity, SGD$30

This is a CULT product from South Korea, sort of their take on cleansing balms. The Clean It Zero line features a solid sherbet cleanser that you scoop out with a spatula (that’s provided). Upon contact with the warmth of your skin, it melts instantly into a thin oil that obliterates makeup. It’s amazing for waterproof eyeliner and budge-proof liquid lipstick. This Purity version is the best one they offer, in my opinion because it isn’t mineral oil based. It contains hydrating oils like argan oil and evening primrose oil plus a bunch of plant extracts, making it the ideal choice for people with sensitive skins like me.

Once your face is an oily, streaky mess, you just add water to emulsify the oil into a milk and then rinse. The product rinses clean, which is CRUCIAL for me as I have oily, acne-prone skin. I won’t recommend the other Clean It Zero formulas because I find them overly fragranced and have a more potentially skin-irritating ingredients deck. But this one, I do recommend.

2. BCL Tsururi Ghassoul Oil Cleansing, SGD$19.90

For my skin, however, I tend to prefer straight up oil cleansers. Midways through my Clean It Zero tub, I realise that I didn’t enjoy using it to remove my face makeup, simply because the texture was too thin for my liking. It felt like I was tugging at my skin, even though it removed makeup decently.

Hence, I went back to my tried and true. This is my third bottle of this stuff and I can’t tell you how much I love this oil cleanser. It’s thick and plush, almost the texture of honey. It spreads onto the skin effortlessly, without any tugging, so there is almost a blanket of emollience separating your hands from your face. This formula is olive oil based, with honey to add moisture (it’s also a great antibac) and charcoal to draw out impurities for a deeper clean. I LOVE this cleansing oil. It removes makeup so well, whilst still leaving the skin balanced and completely purified.

So, I used this to remove my face makeup and reserved the Clean It Zero for my eyes (mostly so that I won’t run through this cleansing oil so quickly).

3. Boscia Detoxifying Black Cleanser, SGD$41

I got this on a whim. Mostly due to my obsession with charcoal. The texture is a strange, thin, black gel that lathers decently. Once you rub the gel onto your damp skin, it instantly warms up. Most people might find this gimmicky and horrible in a tropical climate like Singapore, but I find it comforting. It heats up for about 10 seconds. It gets pretty hot too, I might add.

I use it as a second cleanse, but it does remove makeup well enough. I just prefer to cleanse my skin rather than remove makeup. This is a relatively small bottle, you think “only 150ml?”, but don’t worry! It lasts literally forever. You only need a small amount to clean your whole face and this bottle lasted me almost a year. Midway I got bored using it and was frustrated with the nozzle constantly getting clogged with charcoal, but once I scraped the dried charcoal off and used it again, I realised how much I really liked this cleanser. The ONLY reason I wouldn’t repurchase is the price.

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3. Keana Nadeshiko Rice Cream, SGD$27.90

I wiped this tub CLEAN. I am so deeply, enamoured by this simple tub of moisturiser. Again, this is a Japanese brand that mainly uses rice and sake as their signature skincare ingredient. This formula contains rice bran oil, sake and other soothing ingredients to calm and balance the skin, whilst still injecting it with a shit ton of moisture. The texture is my favourite part of this cream. It appears to be a hefty cream but melts into the skin beautifully, not at all greasy. For my oily skin, it’s just the perfect amount of supple moisturisation, without being clogging and overbearing. I can’t tell you how much I look forward to putting on at night.

My only qualm is that it’s a pretty small tub for the price and I ran through it pretty quickly, considering that I only used it as a night cream. That is the ONLY reason I would hesitate to repurchase.

4. Sephora Mud Mask Purifying & Mattifying, SGD$26

This is the older packaging but this powerful clay mask is now housed in a different tub. It’s enhanced with zinc to help mattify and soothe the skin, while the clay sucks out all the gunk in your pores. This one doesn’t play games. It is often referred as the dupe to Glamglow masks (that are extortionately expensive). I personally think it’s more powerful that that. If you have sensitive skin like me, the initial application will feel as if your skin is burning. It’s a sign of activity because once it dries and I’ve washed it off, my skin isn’t red and aggravated. Instead it’s noticeably clearer and calmer, albeit in need of a moisturiser.

It’s rather difficult to wash off as it clings to the skin like super glue and it is a tad too drying to be used frequently. Despite that, I enjoyed using it and it’s godsend for when your skin is breaking out. It works great on blemishes and clogged pores. Plus it’s heaps cheaper than the Glamglow counterpart.

I would recommend all 5 of these and they are ALL staples. Everyone needs a good oil cleanser to breakdown makeup, detoxifying cleanser, soothing moisturiser and purifying mask.

I’m trying a new skincare routine this year and will definitely keep you posted on any gems I find.

My quest for the PERFECT skincare routine continues!

K-Haul

Posted on April 25, 2016 by Hanan.

Korean beauty has been increasing in popularity for the past few years. 2016 seems to be the year that Korean beauty trends are transcending Asian regions and infiltrating the Western. Beyond the BB and CC creams, there are cushion compacts in every shape and form. Also, Western consumers can find Asian beauty products more readily available at Sephora stores and online Asian beat sites.

In Singapore, we are lucky enough to have a good mix of East and West beauty products to choose from. Personally, I am equally influenced by both. While I favour the Western style of make-up with bronzing, contouring, highlighting and the works, I tend to lean on Asian and European products for skincare.

Recently though, I have grown more interested in Korean skincare due to the hype it is having in the West. It’s easier for me to see reviews of products on different skin tones and types that are not just Asian. Also, more sites are translated to English so I can read the ingredients and directions more thoroughly. I was going through a major K-pop phase when I was younger and was obsessed with anything Korean. But I remembered coming out of it with pretty bad skin as I had adverse reactions to their skincare products. I found them too rich and highly fragranced with ingredients that aggravated my teen acne.

Safe to say I was semi traumatised by that experience and swore of Korean beauty products for years.

Now, I am slowly dipping my toes in it again. This time with a life vest and float. And by that I mean, proper knowledge of ingredients and how they work with my skin and a plethora of websites in English telling me whats inside each product with suggestions on how to best use them.

Isn’t the Internet great?

So, recently, at Duty Free, I picked up a couple of goodies that I thought I’d share with you.

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1. Belif First Aid Aqua Rush Mask

Belif is a Korean brand that has an amazing philosophy. It’s packing reminds me slightly of Kiehl’s in a sense that it’s simple and almost medical in style. Belif claims to leave out nasties like mineral oil, synthetic dyes and fragrances in their formulations. Making it great for sensitive skins. It’s pretty pricey but I was shocked at how much cheaper it is at Duty Free Singapore. Almost half the price! It wasn’t even on sale or anything!

I have been interested in their “Aqua” range because I have dehydrated, combination skin. With all the travelling I did and using Retinol has created some dry eczema patches on my face, while my T-zone remained oily and acne-prone. Hence I needed something intensely hydrating yet non-poreclogging. I was initially interested in the Aqua Bomb moisturiser that everyone is raving about. But I hesitated as Alcohol Denat is quite high up in the ingredients list. So I opted for this mask instead and decided to use it as an overnight mask, even though it is meant to be removed after 20 mins.

It’s amazing for my dehydrated skin. It has a rich gel texture that feels great. It sinks in but still leaves a dewy film. I wake up to super plump looking skin.

2. Chosungah 22 Dong Gong Minn Brow Maker

I’ve been intrigued by this brand ever since I saw my favourite YouTubers haul it. It was on the Sephora US website for a while before the brand finally made its way here to Singapore. Exclusive to SASA, this is a makeup brand that is created by famous Korean makeup artist, Cho Sungah. I mainly am attracted to its distinct and quirky packaging. This one in particular is so fun!

It looks like a highlighter but it’s actually a tinted brow gel. The premise is to make the makeup look like inconspicuous items that one can bring to work or school easily. It’s a little pricey for a tinted brow gel, I’ll admit. Also, it has a strange spoolie, which claims to help you both fill in your brows and set them in place. More on this product soon!

3. Missha Time Revolution Clear Toner

This one, on the hand, is so affordable. Missha is famous for their Time Revolution range that contains the same fermented ingredients that is found in the super expensive SKII line. I bought this toner, thinking that it can somehow perform like the SKII Clear Lotion did on me. I’m genuinely shocked that the active ingredients are so high up the list and it doesn’t contain any nasty ingredients nor parabens. It’s amazing that it is so affordable with such quality ingredients in it.

I’ve been using this for a while now and I’m happy to report that my first impression is that it’s very comparable, if not more effective that the SKII counterpart. This toner has more AHAs and BHAs in it than the SKII Clear Lotion. Hence, it provides a stronger, but still gentle, exfoliation. Perfect for my easily congested skin. Will update you guys on the progress but so far I’m very happy.

4. Banila Co. Clean It Zero Purity

I have been eyeing this product for MONTHS. This is a cult Korean product that people swear by. It’s basically a cleansing balm that removes makeup quickly and effectively, without leaving any residue on the skin. It comes in various versions for different skin types and concerns, but the most popular will be the classic Clean It Zero that comes in a pink tub. I decided to go for the “Purity” version, which is made for sensitive skin as I do suffer from skin sensitivity. More so though, I opted against the original version as its primary ingredient is mineral oil, a cheap filler oil that doesn’t warrant the price tag and may potentially irritate the skin.

I haven’t tried this one yet as I am still using up my Japanese cleansing oil. However, I’m certainly looking forward to it.

5. It’s Skin Power 10 Formula GF Effector

Look at this amazing packaging! I almost mistook it for a very premium Skin Inc product. I was flabbergasted at how affordable the It’s Skin products are. This serum is part of their Power 10 serum range that has a serum for any concern you have. The one I chose was the hydrating serum as my skin, at that time, was super dry from the airplane air. You would think that at a price like this, the ingredients would be pretty rubbish. But ingredient deck is surprisingly impressive.

I’ve been using it for a while now every morning and I’m quite happy with it. It glides on the skin silkily and sinks in quickly, yet still leaving my face feeling super hydrated. It has knocked my previous morning serum out of my routine, which was the Hada Labo Super Hyaluronic Serum.

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I also received the Missha Tinted Gel Gloss in a coral colour. I got this for free when I purchased the Missha toner. It was so unexpected because the item was so affordable and yet they still gave me a free gift. Love Missha as a brand!

So that’s it for now! I’ll definitely do an update once I’ve properly tested these products out.